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Lean Production

The term "Lean Production" or "Lean Manufacturing" describes a philosophy that incorporates a set of tools and techniques for use in business processes to optimize time, human resources, assets and productivity, and at the same time to improve the level of quality of products and services to the customer.

Produce in a lean can be defined as a system for continuous reduction of waste throughout the organization, from production to the offices.

The Lean Manufacturing, as an integrated system with other (quality, economic / financial, etc..), start's from upper goals from the typical business plan, to develop into specific projects for improvement (eg Six Sigma), with particular focus in the production and delivery of the product / service.

In fact, implementing a Lean Manufacturing System, does not differ much from a quality management system: business targets are turned into specific actions for processes to reduce 7 categories of waste:

Excess or advance of production;
Delays;
Handling and transport;
Poor design process;
Stocks
Poor performance of the process;
Production of products / services defective

Lean Manufacturing, however, must understand the whole system to develop the product or service, managing the processes relating to the client, design and development, production and complete supply chain (Supply Chain Management).

Tools and basic methods of Lean Manufacturing

Many of tools and methods at the basis of a Lean Manufacturing system, were inherited from the experiences of the 80s made by the excellent Japanese companies, especially from Toyota. The tools and methods for the continuous reduction of wastage include:

JIT: Just In Time
KANBAN / SYSTEM "PULL"
Poka-YOKE
THE METHOD "5S"
SMED: Single Minute Exchange of Die
TPM: Total Productive Maintenance
TAKT TIME
HEIJUNKA
CELLULAR MANUFACTURING
KAIZEN